Uber app to Integrate robotaxis from Cruise in 2025

General Motors' self-driving subsidiary Cruise announced today that it has entered into a multi-year agreement with ride-hailing behemoth Uber to introduce its robotaxis to the platform in 2025. Although Cruise did not specify when consumers would be able to view its cars on Uber's platform.

Another clue that Cruise is getting ready to bring its robotaxis back on public roads after one hit a pedestrian in October comes from the statement. (The pedestrian was struck by a human-driven car first, which put her in the robotaxi's path).

It also comes as CEO of Uber Dara Khosrowshahi recently positioned the ride-hailing business as the best partner to enter the market for autonomous car startups aiming to go global. For its ride-hail business, Uber has already worked with Waymo. In Phoenix, Waymo cars have been accessible through the Uber app since October 2023. Prior to the safety issue, which caused it to lose its licenses to operate autonomously in California and ground its fleet in the United States, Cruise was rapidly entering new markets. Cruise had begun testing driverless vehicles in Miami and was charging for autonomous rides in San Francisco, Austin, Houston, and Phoenix.

In April 2024, Cruise resumed manual testing of its robotaxis in Phoenix. Since then, it has moved its testing to Dallas and Houston. While it prepares for a relaunch, the firm is also being cooperative with regulators. Cruise said earlier today that it had recalled 1,194 of its AVs in order to address a government safety investigation about an unanticipated braking problem. Cruise consented in June to pay California regulators a fine of $112,500 for improperly managing communications on the incident that occurred last autumn. Cruise was able to resume operations in the state as a result of the settlement.

Uber has active agreements with sidewalk delivery robot businesses Serve Robotics and Cartken, as well as autonomous car startup Nuro, for its food delivery division. Waabi and Aurora Innovation, two autonomous trucking firms, are also partners with Uber, albeit neither of them is currently running entirely autonomously—that is, without a human driver—yet. Uber is probably going to announce more possible agreements in the upcoming days, weeks, and months. With Chinese EV startup BYD, the business just inked an agreement to add 100,000 additional EVs to the platform in areas outside of the United States. According to the two businesses, they will work together on "future BYD autonomous-capable vehicles" that will be used on the Uber network. In June, BYD announced plans to invest $14 billion in AV technology.